21441: Ruling on wearing engagement and wedding rings

What's the ruling regarding wedding rings for men? If permissible, can they be of any material other than gold? What other metals, other than gold, is prohibited for men?

Praise be to Allaah.

With regard to men wearing gold, whether it is a ring or
anything else, it is not permissible under any circumstances, because the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) forbade gold for
the males of this ummah. He saw a man wearing a ring of gold and he
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) took if from his hand and said,
“Would any one of you take a coal from the fire and hold it in his hand?”
(Narrated by Muslim, al-Libaas wa’l-Zeenah, 3897). So it is not
permissible for the Muslim male to wear a gold ring. But with regard to
rings of silver or any other kind of metal, it is permissible for men to
wear them even if they are precious metals.

With regard to the wedding ring, which is worn on the
occasion of marriage, this is not one of the customs of the Muslims. If it
is believed that it generates love between the spouses, and that taking it
off and not wearing it will have an effect on the marital relationship, then
this is regarded as a form of shirk and is a kind of jaahili belief. Based
on the above, it is not permissible to wear a wedding ring under any
circumstances.

Firstly, because it is an imitation of those who are no good;
it is a custom that has come to the Muslims from the non-Muslims.

Secondly, if that is accompanied by the belief that it has an
effect on the marital relationship, then this is a kind of shirk. Laa
hawla wa laa quwwata illa Billaah (there is no power and no strength
except with Allaah).

(From a fatwa issued by Shaykh Saalih al-Fawzaan).

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen was asked about the ruling on wearing
engagement rings. He said: The engagement ring is a kind of ring, and there
is nothing wrong with rings in principle, unless that is accompanied by some
belief, as some people do when the man writes his name on the ring that he
gives to his fiancée, and she writes her name on the ring that she gives to
him, believing that this will create strong bonds between the couple. In
this case, this ring is haraam, because it is an attachment to something for
which there is no basis in Islam and which makes no sense. Similarly, with
regard to the engagement ring, it is not permissible to the man to put it on
his fiancée’s hand, because she is not his wife yet and she is still a
stranger (non-mahram) to him, because she is not his wife until after the
marriage contract has been done.